SpaceX’s Starship, designed to eventually send astronauts to the moon and beyond, undergoes its fourth flight test from the company’s Boca Chica launch pad in this image obtained on June 6, 2024 and further afield near Brownsville.
SpaceX | Reuters
Musk’s In a notice of violation targeting the flooding system at the company’s Starbase launch facility, the Texas agency said SpaceX repeatedly violated environmental regulations by releasing pollutants into or near bodies of water in Texas.
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) issued a notice last week, five months after the EPA’s Region 6 office, which covers Texas and surrounding states, also notified SpaceX that similar activities by the company violated the Clean Water Act.
The notices and related investigative records obtained by CNBC have not been previously reported.
TCEQ said its agency’s office in the South Texas city of Harlingen (near Boca Chica Starbase) received a complaint on August 6, 2023, alleging that SpaceX “discharged flood water without authorization from TCEQ” ”.
“The Harlingen District received a total of 14 complaints alleging environmental impacts from the facility’s flooding system,” the regulator said in the filing.
Aerospace companies, including SpaceX, often need to comply with state and federal laws to gain approval. Federal Aviation Administration for future releases. SpaceX is seeking permission to conduct up to 25 Starship and Super Heavy rocket launches and landings per year at its Boca Chica facility. Notices of violation could delay approvals and subject SpaceX to civil fines, further investigations and criminal charges.
SpaceX did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
eager to rebuild
On July 25, 2024, TCEQ’s environmental investigators “conducted an internal compliance records review” to determine whether SpaceX was in compliance with wastewater regulations. The investigation found that between March and July this year, SpaceX discharged industrial wastewater without permission four times.
Water shower systems with flame deflectors diffuse the heat, sound and energy generated by orbital test flights and rocket launches. But before it began test flights of Starship, the largest rocket ever built, SpaceX did not build the system at the Boca Chica launch site.
SpaceX is developing Starship to transport people and equipment to the moon and, if Musk ultimately realizes his grand vision, colonize Mars. During Starship’s first test flight in April 2023, the energy generated by the rocket caused SpaceX’s concrete launch pad to explode and its spacecraft to explode in mid-air.
Large chunks of concrete were thrown into a nesting and migratory site important to some nearby endangered species, and a 3.5-acre fire broke out on Boca Chica State Park lands south of the launch pad. In response, environmental groups filed lawsuits against SpaceX and the FAA, which authorized its launches.
With Musk pushing for another orbital test flight in one to two months, SpaceX hastily rebuilt the launch pad and installed a new water shower system to prevent it from exploding again. Regulators said the company bypassed a permitting process that required it to meet pollutant discharge limits and describe how it would treat wastewater.
SpaceX first run Full pressure test In July 2023, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) launched an investigation requiring the company to provide information on wastewater discharges and other matters.
The agency sent SpaceX a formal violation notice on March 13, according to records obtained by CNBC.
On March 14, SpaceX continued to move forward with its plans despite receiving the EPA notification one day in advance. third test flight Starship once again used an unauthorized water sprinkler system at the launch site.
The company reached a new milestone through test flights, and Musk seemed very victorious. NASA Administrator Bill Nelson congratulated SpaceX on a “successful test flight!” despite the rocket being lost during its descent over the Indian Ocean.
Environmental Engineer Eric Roesch ESG Hound Blog Focusing on business and sustainable development, SpaceX is expected to need to install a water shower system on the launch pad before Starship’s first test flight. He was also one of the first to criticize SpaceX for using such systems without proper permission.
Roesch said in an interview that once these agencies tell SpaceX that it violated environmental regulations, continuing launch operations from Starbase will expose the company to greater legal risks.
“Further wastewater releases could trigger additional investigations and criminal charges against the company or anyone involved in the authorized launch,” he said.
The Federal Aviation Administration said on Wednesday it was unclear whether SpaceX would test fly its Starship super-heavy launch vehicle again.
The Washington Post | The Washington Post | Getty Images
Multi-year violations
Rosch also pointed out that after receiving the EPA’s notice of violation, SpaceX was required to apply for a license within 30 days. The company did not submit its application until July 1, about 110 days later, according to a copy of the application provided by TCEQ’s public records office.
“They have been violating wastewater regulations for years, and it appears they continue to do so with the support of the FAA,” Roesch said.
Kenneth Teague, a coastal ecologist outside Austin, reviewed the 483-page report. SpaceX license application. Teague, who has more than three decades of experience in water quality and coastal planning, told CNBC the app is riddled with holes and lacks basic details on discharge volumes, wastewater temperatures and outfall locations.
Teague said he is particularly concerned about mercury concentrations in wastewater from SpaceX’s water shower system. Teague said the levels revealed in the documents “significantly exceed mercury water quality standards.”
according to United States Geological Survey, Mercury is “one of the most serious contaminants threatening our nation’s waters because it is a potent neurotoxicant to fish, wildlife and humans.”
Teague said high-temperature emissions and high concentrations of pollutants such as mercury could have “significant negative impacts” such as killing “small animals” that make up seabirds’ diets.
“SpaceX’s application fails to address this very serious problem,” he said.
CNBC contacted the FAA on Friday. The agency did not comment on the matter but announced on Monday it was postponing a public meeting scheduled for this week. The purpose of the meetings was to conduct an environmental review of SpaceX’s plan to increase launches and landings of Starship/Super Heavy launch vehicles from the Boca Chica launch site in Cameron County, Texas.
The FAA did not provide a reason for the delay and said a new date would be announced in the future.
watch: high above the clouds
